Internet Explorer Err Msg: Could Not Open...

ID: Q153967

The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 2.0, 3.0 for Windows 95
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore it if a problem occurs. For information about how to do this, view the "Restoring the Registry" Help topic in Regedit.exe or the "Restoring a Registry Key" Help topic in Regedt32.exe.

SYMPTOMS

When you try to use Internet Explorer to connect to a World Wide Web site after a connection to the Internet has been established, you may receive one of the following error messages:

Could not open http://<site>.
-OR-
The Internet site <site> was not found. Please make sure the address is correct. Could not open http://<site>.


CAUSE

These errors can occur for any of the following reasons:

  • Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) is not properly configured to use a Domain Name Server (DNS).


  • The Web site you are attempting to connect to is outside the domain of your Internet service provider (ISP), and TCP/IP is not properly configured to use a default gateway when accessing a remote network.


  • The Web site you are trying to connect to is not available.


  • One or more global TCP/IP setting conflicts with the TCP/IP settings for the connection used to connect to your ISP.


  • Internet Explorer is configured to connect to the Internet using both Dial-Up Networking and a proxy server (a server on a local area network that lets you connect to the Internet without using a modem). With versions of Internet Explorer earlier than version 3.0, this behavior occurs when both the Use AutoDial and Use Proxy Server options in the Internet Properties dialog box are enabled. With Internet Explorer 3.0, this occurs when both the Connect To The Internet As Needed and Connect Through A Proxy Server options in the Internet Properties dialog box are enabled.


  • The Wsock32.dll file included with Windows 95 has been replaced by a third-party program.


  • Internet Explorer's cache is too full, or one or more of the files stored in the cache is damaged.


  • One or more TCP/IP components are not functioning properly.


  • The Autodial key is missing from the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\ CurrentControlSet\Services\Winsock key in the registry.



RESOLUTION

To work around this problem, use the PING command to determine if the problem is being caused by incorrect default gateway settings or incorrect DNS server settings. To do this, click Start, point to Programs, click Command Prompt, and type the following commands at the command prompt (press ENTER after each command)

cd \<windows>
ping <site>
where <windows> is the name of the folder in which you installed Windows and <site> is the name of the domain you are trying to access.

If a "Bad IP Address" error message is displayed, the error is likely being caused by incorrect DNS server settings. To work around this problem, see the "DNS Server Settings" section in this article.

If a "Reply from <xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx>: Destination net unreachable" error message is displayed (where <xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx> is the IP address of the site you are attempting to connect to), the error is likely being caused by incorrect default gateway settings. To work around this problem, see the "Default Gateway Settings" section in this article.

If the steps in the "DNS Server Settings" or "Default Gateway Settings" section in this article do not resolve the problem, see the "Additional Troubleshooting Steps" section in this article.

DNS Server Settings

If you are accessing the Internet using Dial-Up Networking, use the following steps:
  1. Double-click My Computer, and then double-click Dial-Up Networking.


  2. Use the right mouse button to click the connection used to connect to your ISP, and then click Properties on the menu that appears.


  3. Click Server Type, click TCP/IP Settings, and then enter the DNS server settings provided by your ISP.


If you are accessing the Internet using a proxy server or other LAN-based connection, use the following steps:
  1. In Control Panel, double-click Network.


  2. Click the TCP/IP protocol, and then click Properties.


  3. Click the DNS Configuration tab, and then enter the DNS server settings provided by your ISP.


Default Gateway Settings

If you are accessing the Internet by using Dial-Up Networking, use the following steps:
  1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Dial-Up Networking.


  2. Use the right mouse button to click the connection used to connect to your ISP, and then click Properties on the menu that appears.


  3. Click Server Type, click TCP/IP Settings, and then click the "Use default gateway on remote network" check box to select it.


If you are accessing the Internet using a proxy server or other LAN-based connection, use the following steps:
  1. In Control Panel, double-click Network.


  2. Click the TCP/IP protocol, and then click Properties.


  3. Click the Gateway tab, enter the IP address of the gateway provided by your ISP in the New Gateway box, and then click Add.


NOTE: If you are accessing the Internet using a proxy server, you may not need to configure the TCP/IP protocol to use a default gateway when accessing a remote network. To find out if your proxy server requires a default gateway, contact your system or network administrator.

Additional Troubleshooting Steps

To troubleshoot the problem further, follow these steps. After performing each step, check to see if the problem has been resolved.
  1. Attempt to connect to another Web site to verify that the problem does not occur with another site. If the problem does not occur with another site, contact the administrator of the site to which you originally tried to connect to verify that the site is currently available.


  2. Determine if the global TCP/IP settings conflict with the TCP/IP settings for the connection used to connect to your ISP. To do so, follow these steps: NOTE: Make sure to make a note of any settings that you remove while performing the following steps. If your computer is connected to a network and you are using the TCP/IP protocol to access the network (in addition to the Internet), you may need to replace the settings after the problem has been resolved.

    1. In Control Panel, double-click Network.


    2. Click the TCP/IP protocol, and then click Properties.


    3. If the Specify An Address option is selected on the IP Address tab and an IP address has been entered in the IP Address box, remove the IP address from the IP Address box.


    4. Click the Gateway tab, and then remove all gateways from the Installed Gateways list.


    5. Click the DNS Configuration tab. If the Enable DNS option is selected, click Disable DNS.


    If these steps resolve the problem, the global TCP/IP settings that you removed conflict with the TCP/IP settings for the connection used to connect to your ISP. If your computer is not connected to a network, or you are not using the TCP/IP protocol to access the network, you do not need to perform any additional steps to troubleshoot this problem. The TCP/IP settings that you removed do not need to be replaced.

    However, if your computer is connected to a network and you are using the TCP/IP protocol to access the network, you may be unable to access the network until you replace the TCP/IP settings that you removed. To prevent this problem from reoccurring when you replace the settings, contact your system or network administrator to verify that the settings are accurate.


  3. Verify that Internet Explorer is not configured to connect to the Internet using both Dial-Up Networking and a proxy server. To do so, follow these steps:

    1. Use the right mouse button to click the Internet icon on the desktop, and then click Properties on the menu that appears.


    2. If you are using a version of Internet Explorer earlier than 3.0, verify that the Use AutoDial check box on the AutoDial tab and the Use Proxy Server check box on the Advanced tab are not both selected.


    If you are using Internet Explorer 3.0, verify that the Connect To The Internet As Needed and Connect Through A Proxy Server check boxes on the Connection tab are not both selected.

    NOTE: If you connect to the Internet using a Dial-Up Networking connection, you cannot access Web sites if the Use Proxy Server or Connect Through A Proxy Server check box is selected. If you connect to the Internet using a proxy server, you may be able to access Web sites if the Use AutoDial or Connect To The Internet As Needed check box is selected, but configuring Internet Explorer in this manner is not recommended.

    If you access the Internet using a proxy server and the steps described in this article do not resolve the problem, the problem may be caused by incorrect proxy server settings. For information about trouble- shooting proxy server settings, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
    Q139546 Troubleshooting Internet Explorer and Proxy Servers


  4. Extract a new copy of the Wsock32.dll file from your original Windows 95 disks or CD. The Wsock32.dll file is located in the Win95_11.cab cabinet file on the CD-ROM or in the Win95_12.cab cabinet file on disk 12.

    For information about using the Extract tool, type extract at a command prompt, or see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
    Q129605 How to Extract Original Compressed Windows Files


  5. Empty Internet Explorer's cache. To empty the cache if you are using a version of Internet Explorer earlier than version 3.0, click Options on the View menu in Internet Explorer, click the Advanced tab, and then click Empty in the Cache area. To empty the cache if you are using Internet Explorer 3.0, click Options on the View menu in Internet Explorer, click the Advanced tab, click Settings in the Temporary Internet Files area, and then click Empty Folder.


  6. Use the PING command to verify that the TCP/IP protocol is functioning properly. To do this, click Start, point to Programs, click Command Prompt, and type the following commands at the command prompt (press ENTER after each command)
    ping 127.0.0.1
    ping <address>
    where <address> is the IP address of your computer. If the TCP/IP protocol is functioning properly, four lines that appear similar to the following lines are displayed
    Reply from <address>: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=32
    where <address> is the IP address that you used with the PING command. If a "Request timed out" or other similar error message is displayed, the TCP/IP protocol may not be functioning properly and may need to be reinstalled.

    NOTE: If you do not know the IP address of your computer, click the Start button, click Run, type winipcfg in the Open box, and then click OK. When the IP Configuration dialog box appears, click PPP Adapter in the list of adapters. Your computer's IP address appears in the IP Address box.


Autodial Key Missing from Registry

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys And Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it.
  1. Use Registry Editor to export the following registry key to the desktop:
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Winsock


  2. Create a new key named Autodial in the registry key above.


  3. In the Autodial key, create a String value named AutodialDllName32. Set the data value to wininet.dll.


  4. In the Autodial key, create a new string value named AutodialFcnName32. Set the data value to InternetAutodialCallback.


  5. Quit Registry Editor and restart the computer.



MORE INFORMATION

The error message stated above can also occur if you have the PPP/SLIP Adapter from FTP Software installed in Network properties. Removing this adapter and TCP/IP stack resolves the problem. If you later decide you want to use the PPP/SLIP Adapter from FTP Software, you can add it again in Network properties.

Additional query words: 2.00 3.00 win95 ie3 ie30 ie2 ie20

Keywords : dun msiew95
Version : WINDOWS:2.0,3.0
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbprb


Last Reviewed: September 8, 1999
© 2000 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Terms of Use.